Morning in Equestria
by Rosepixie
Summary: A series of very short stories about characters from the My Little Pony universe in the morning. There is very little plot, but it is safe to assume that the stories all take place on the same morning, so small connections may become evident. I have no current plans to expand any of these into longer stories, but may continue to add more of them over time.
1. Granny Smith

Granny Smith woke up before anybody else. She was always excited the day before a reunion. Most days she slept in just little while her grandchildren did morning chores and then she got up to make them breakfast, but today she got up before any of them. She started by baking warm cinnamon bread and left it out to cool so her grandchildren could enjoy it for breakfast.

Once that was out of the way, Granny Smith set out to bake her famous apple pies! They were always a big hit at the reunions and she enjoyed making them very much. She started by gathering all the ingredients and supplies for the crusts and then she got down to work. All she needed now were fresh apples!

Big Mac came down first. He wordlessly ate some bread and, since there were few chores for the day, quickly fetched a bushel of apples. Then he headed out towards town. He didn't say where he was going, but Granny Smith smiled as she rolled out her pie dough. She was pretty sure she had a good idea of what his secret errand might be. He would tell her about it in his own good time.

Apple Bloom bounced down next. She chattered constantly as she munched her bread and then cheerfully fetched the requested bushel of apples. Almost before Granny Smith realized that she was going, Apple Bloom had disappeared to meet her little friends at the treehouse. Granny Smith just shook her head and chuckled as she continued pressing dough snuggly into the pie tins to form the bottom crusts for pies. Those fillies were so impatient to get their cutie marks, but she sometimes wondered if they would have as much fun once they had them as they did trying to make it happen.

The last to come down was Applejack. She was usually up first, but Granny Smith suspected that something had been keeping her up late and refrained from commenting. She watched her usually cheerful granddaughter eat in silence. Applejack would tell her what was wrong when she was ready.

While Applejack was out doing her chores, Granny Smith sat down to begin peeling the apples that Big Mac and Apple Bloom had brought for her. She enjoyed the unusual quiet of the house while she worked. She loved everything about pie-making and the prospect of a whole day making her famous apple pies had her feeling very content.

Eventually, Applejack came back with a third bushel of apples for the pies. Without a word, she joined Granny Smith peeling apples. After a while, she finally spoke, making Granny Smith smile. She knew Applejack well enough to have waited and now she knew her granddaughter had finally decided to tell her what was wrong.

"Granny, I been thinkin' … "


	2. Flim

Flim looked out of the tent at the clear morning sky. It was a beautiful day - a perfect day to set up shop in a new town. Just over the rise was Applewood, another place with a large Apple Family orchard.

The Apple Family was the biggest thorn in his side. Every time he and Flam set up shop in a town without an Apple Family orchard, they did well and made lots of bits. The problem was that they often struggled to secure a large enough supply of apples in those towns. Supply was never a problem where there were Apple Family orchards, but the family consistently found ways to turn ponies against Flim and Flam, forcing them to leave town with little or no profit.

At least Applewood wasn't as bad as Ponyville. After their last visit to Ponyville, they weren't even sure if they should ever visit there again! The most frustrating pony from the Apple Family, Applejack, was considered a pillar of the community there. Whenever they ran into her it never turned out well. Flim dreamed of getting revenge on her and all of the Apples, but so far he hadn't figured out how to go about doing it.

It hadn't actually been very long since their last visit to Applewood. Flim scowled as he recalled the argument he and Flam had had about it. He felt that they should avoid Apple Family towns for a while. At least until they had a plan for dealing with them. Flam had been adamant that they try Applewood again, though, so here they were. The miracle tonic hadn't done so well here, but they had a new product to sell now - a "healing" balm that was really just apple butter with a little aloe. Hopefully this would do better.

With a sigh, Flim sat down to eat some breakfast and wait for Flam to wake up. Perhaps he could come up with a solution. They had come with a bigger supply of balm and of apples than they usually travelled with, so perhaps they wouldn't need to meet the Apples at all.

Why did Flam want to come back here so badly, anyway? At first, Flim had wondered if it was a mare, but Flam had laughed at the suggestion. But if it wasn't a mare, then what was it? Maybe he had a grudge against someone here? Fim made himself a second bowl of oatmeal as he considered this possibility.

Flim realized that Flam hadn't woken up yet. That was unusual. Generally, he was up and about before Flim got through his first bowl of oatmeal. Why would he be sleeping late today? Maybe Flim should go check on his brother, find out what was going on.


	3. Lyrica

Lyrica sat at her dressing table sipping lemon tea. It was midmorning, which was a bit earlier than she had planned to get up. Unfortunately, there had been a few problems with the costumes during a dress rehearsal for Aida last night. She had been halfway through her favorite aria when her headdress had literally fallen apart on her head! After the finale, the company had inspected the rest of the costumes and discovered that nearly every piece was on the verge of disintegrating.

Lucky for the company, opening night wasn't for another week. They were supposed to have a special preview performance tonight, but they could make do with what they had for it. Next week was a different story, though. The real performances had to be as perfect as they could make them. Especially the command performance for the four royal princesses in two weeks!

As a result of this emergency, today Lyrica had to make a trip out to Ponyville to see what could be done before opening night. Lyrica's friend Sapphire Shores had been at the rehearsal last night and had recommended a designer from Ponyville that she had hired for costumes in the past. Lyrica was hoping that this designer would be able to help them. The original costume designer had been a young pony from Manehatten, but they were wary of asking her to fix things after seeing the quality she had provided so far. Lyrica had no doubt that the business office would take it up with her at some point, though.

And so she had picked out a small selection of pieces to take with her to see if Sapphire's designer would (and could) help them out. She would much rather be resting for the performance tonight, but she wouldn't leave this errand to anyone else. It was far too important.

A knock heralded the arrival of the hired porter who would accompany her to Ponyville with the box of costume pieces. With a sigh, she stood up and squared her shoulders, ready for the day's errand.


	4. Gilda

Gilda had flown until pretty late last night, so she let herself sleep in a bit. She woke on the cloud she had fallen asleep on and looked around. The cloud had blown a ways during the night and she needed to figure out where she was.

Launching herself high into the air to survey the landscape below, Gilda saw that there was a river flowing by and she could see the Everfree Forest not far off. Beyond that, she knew, was Ponyville, which mean that she was closer to Cloudsdale than she had been when she stopped for the night.

Gilda was heading there for the Autumn Festival that marked the shift from summer to fall. Before she got there, though, she needed to find some breakfast. Gilda liked the ponies she had become friends with, but their food definitely left something to be desired. Since she knew that there wouldn't be a scrap of meat in Cloudsdale, Gilda set out to find something worth eating before she headed to the festival.

The river looked promising, so she decided to start there. She swooped low over the water looking for prey. She spotted a school of fish close to the surface and dived through the air towards it. Her front feet breached the water sending fish scrambling in all directions. In the chaos, Gilda managed to grab one. She soared back up towards the sky with her prize.

Finding a perch on a cloud, she set to feasting on her catch. Fish were better cooked, but even an uncooked fish was better than the rabbit food that she knew would be waiting for her in Cloudsdale!


	5. Rarity

Rarity's alarm went off and she slipped the silk sleep mask off of her eyes so that she could turn it off. Opal was curled up on her velvet pillow pointedly showing in intention of getting up. Rarity sighed and climbed out of bed.

Any proper day started with a proper breakfast, so Rarity headed down to her kitchen. She had a muffin that she had bought yesterday, so she sat down to eat it. She loved muffins. They were the perfect breakfast - not too heavy or too light, a perfect mix of sweet and healthy, and always exactly the right amount of food.

As she did every morning, Rarity went over her plans for the day as she ate. She had dropped off a big order with a customer in Canterlot yesterday and had no remaining outstanding orders, so she would be able to spend time in her inspiration room working on new designs today. It had been a while since Rarity had gotten a day to simply design and she was very much looking forward it.

Pinkie Pie was coming to bake in Rarity's kitchen later, but she was hoping to be able to simply leave Pinkie alone and get some work done herself.

As she was cleaning up from breakfast, Rarity remembered that she had promised to drop a box of Daring Do fan club badges off at Twilight's castle this morning. She had designed and made them several days ago at Rainbow's request. The club's first meeting was today and she needed to get them over to Twilight.

"Hmm …" Rarity mused as she looked around the main workroom, "where did I put that box?"


	6. Twilight Sparkle

Princess Twilight Sparkle woke up in her crystal bedroom in her shiny new crystal tree castle. She hadn't fully adjusted to actually being an alicorn princess yet when she suddenly had more to get used to! Now she had her very own castle complete with guards and thrones and everything.

Twilight glanced over towards Spike's little bed and was surprised to find it empty. Usually the little dragon was still asleep when she got up. She wondered where he was as she stretched out her wings (they still got stiff when she slept).

She opened her bedroom door and sighed. On either side stood two stiff guards staring stoically straight ahead. Twilight was not used to being guarded all the time yet. She was still borrowing guards from Canterlot and the Crystal Empire, but Celestia had been encouraging her to form her own company of guards. Several of the ones currently working for her had made it clear that they would be happy to stay on a more permanent basis when her guard company was created. Twilight was grateful, but it still felt too intimidating to her.

As she headed towards the dining room, she turned her mind to more pleasant matters - her project for the day. Rainbow Dash had come up with the idea of forming a Daring Do Fan Club and today was the first meeting. Twilight had already made a checklist of all the things that they should talk about at the meeting.

With her checklist before her, Twilight sat down to nibble at some daisies and do the first thing on her to-do list for the day - double-check the checklist!


	7. Big Mac

Big Mac had a small mirror in his room, but he almost never looked into it. Apple trees didn't care how he looked and his sisters would generally do something about it if his mane got too wild or something was on his face. Today he wanted to look his best, though. Today was a special day. Today he was going to propose to Cheerilee.

After fixing his mane again and assuring himself that he looked fine, Big Mac headed downstairs. Granny Smith was in the kitchen baking and there was no sign of either of his sisters yet.

"Look nice this morning, Big Mac," Granny Smith greeted him. "Would you bring me a bushel of apples before you head out today? I'm baking pies for the reunion tomorrow."

"A-yup," Big Mac replied, heading out the door.

It only took a few minutes for him to complete Granny Smith's request. He delivered the apples to the kitchen and then headed off for town. His first stop was at Sugarcube Corners for a special cupcake he had requested earlier in the week.

"Good morning, Big Mac!" Mrs. Cake greeted him as she came bustling out of the kitchen.

Mr. Cake had been restacking candy boxes that the twins had knocked over, but on hearing his wife's greeting he turned to see Big Mac.

"Today's the day?" he asked.

"A-yup," Big Mac replied.

"Good luck!" the tall pony said with a grin before turning to resume his task.

Mrs. Cake retrieved a prettily wrapped pastry box with a red ribbon around it. She passed it across the counter to Big Mac.

"I'm sure she'll say yes," Mrs. Cake offered. "That pony is crazy about you!"

Big Mac smiled and headed off to his next stop - the flower stand. He sure hoped that she was going to say yes!


	8. Comet Tail

Comet Tail loved the feel of the fresh, morning air blowing his mane and tail. He loved the sounds of the park with birds and small animals bustling about at their morning tasks. They always made him smile and think of her.

He was nearing her cottage, but hadn't spotted her yet. Perhaps she was still inside, asleep. He tried hard to make sure his run took him past her home at the same time every morning when she was usually out feeding the animals she took care of.

The trail wound around behind her cottage and his hooves picked up speed, pounding rhythmically on the dirt path. Comet Tail had always enjoyed his morning run, but lately the highlight had become the glimpse he got of her feeding the chickens and playing with various animals.

He heard her voice before he saw her. She was singing as she spread seeds and corn kernels among the flock of birds who lived in her yard. The morning sunshine glinted off her butter-yellow coat and shell-pink mane and tail. Her voice, sweet as any angel's, seemed to dance enticingly through the park. She was a vision.

Comet Tail slowed to a walk as he passed her yard, trying to make his glimpse of her stretch out even longer. He smiled as he listened to her sing. One day, he swore to himself, he would work up the courage to go talk to her. One day he would tell her how beautiful she is.

But not today.


	9. Rainbow Dash

Rainbow Dash was up early clearing the sky of clouds over Cloudsdale to help ensure that the sky would be clear and beautiful for the festival. Normally, Rainbow was excited about festivals, but today she was eager to finish up her weather duties and get back to Ponyville.

Rainbow had convinced Twilight to start a Daring Do fan club as part of her efforts to spread the magic of friendship throughout Equestria and today was the first meeting. As one of Daring Do's biggest fans, Rainbow had lots of ideas for the club. She was hoping to get to Twilight's castle early to help set up.

The other weather ponies were laughing and playing as they worked. Normally, Rainbow was doing the same. She loved her work as a weather pony. Lately, however, she had felt much more at home in Ponyville than in Cloudsdale and how she split her time clearly reflected that. She had convinced several of her Cloudsdale friends to join the Daring Do fan club, though, so she hoped that would help bridge the two towns more.

Once the sky was finally clear, Rainbow Dash headed off to the Wonderbolts training grounds. Daring Do was an extremely popular series in Cloudsdale, even among the Wonderbolts. She wanted to invite her friends in the Corps to join the fan club too. She knew that they probably wouldn't be able to make the meeting today, but there would be more meetings in the future.

Rainbow Dash was excited and hoped the club turned out to be as much fun as she expected it to be. Maybe if it was successful enough she could convince "A. K. Yearling" (the real Daring Do) to come do a signing or something for the club members!


	10. Skydancer

Skywishes woke up excited for the day ahead. She looked out over the fluffy Cloudsdale landscape outside her window. It was an absolutely beautiful day due to the efforts of the weather ponies that she could see still clearing the sky of stray clouds. Decorator ponies were busy hanging banners, buntings, and bows around the square in preparation of the day's festivities.

It was the official start of the Autumn season and the weather patterns would shift accordingly in the next few weeks. Cloudsdale always threw big parties at the shift of seasons. Skywishes was particularly excited this time because she would be competing for the first time in the highest level of the skydancing competition. She had been rehearsing her two routines for months and now she was able to consistently perform them flawlessly. She hoped she would be able to do so again today!

After a light breakfast, Skywishes went to the dance studio to warm up. She stretched her muscles and did some basic wing warm-ups to get her wings loose and ready. She went outside and did some simple flight exercises. She didn't want to strain or tire herself before her performance.

With a good hour before the first round of the competition to begin, Skywishes decided to go wander through the now fully decorated central square and see the festival vendors. Maybe she could watch some of the beginner skydancers doing their routines as well. The little beginners were always so cute flitting around on their tiny wings! Cheering for them would sustain the good mood she was in and maybe hold off her nerves just a little bit longer.


	11. Carrot Cake

Carrot Cake woke up next to his beautiful wife and smiled. Every morning it took his breath away all over again how beautiful she was. As she slept beside him he thought back over their years together. She was his best friend and he knew that she would always be his special somepony. He decided then and there that he would do something special for her today.

Letting her sleep a little longer, Carrot Cake slipped out of bed and went to check on their twins. Pumpkin was sweetly asleep in her bed when Carrot Cake entered the nursery. Pound was fluttering over his bed with his little wings, however. With a gleeful giggle, the little colt sank down to land on Carrot Cake's back. The tall pony smiled back at his little son.

"Come on, buddy," he said softly, "let's let the girls sleep while we make some breakfast."

They made their way down to the kitchen quietly. Carrot Cake set Pound Cake in his raised seat and set to getting some breakfast ready for the family.

Forty-five minutes later Cup Cake and Pumpkin came down to find a mess being cleaned up in the kitchen and a pile of cooling breakfast muffins waiting on the small kitchen table. Pound was already covered in muffin crumbs. Carrot kissed his beautiful wife and got Pumpkin seated in her seat with her own plate of muffins.

"We're going to be shorthooved today," Cup Cake said between bites. "It's market day, too."

"What if I invited Peppermint Twist to come help us?" Carrot suggested. "She loves helping and that candy she makes sells really well. I'm sure that my sister would be happy to let her come help us."

"That's a wonderful idea," she agreed. "It's too early now, but later this morning you should go over and ask."

"I will," he replied with a smile. The errand would let him get the surprise he had in mind for Cup as well.


	12. Golden Harvest

Golden Harvest was not a morning pony. She didn't stay up late or anything, she simply liked sleep a lot. Her alarm clock went off every morning, though, and she always got up when it rang.

Today she stretched and climbed out of her bed. It was market day and Golden Harvest did love market day. She washed her face and hooves to wake herself up and headed to her kitchen to find some breakfast. Golden Harvest had spent the last few days harvesting the vegetables and herbs from her gardens and greenhouses that were ready to be eaten. She had bushels of carrots, potatoes, and onions. There were baskets of tomatoes and leeks, bags of lettuce, and bundles of herbs. All were packed in her wagon and ready for market.

After grabbing some breakfast and cleaning up, Golden Harvest set out for the marketplace to set up her stall. She always got the very last stall on the first row of stands. It was a good spot and all of her regular customers knew to look for her there.

The cart was heavy and awkward, but Golden Harvest was well-practiced in getting it to go where she wanted it. Still, she couldn't help wishing that market started about three hours later so she could be sleeping still instead of pulling her wagon out of another pothole in the road. She was seriously considering asking the mayor, or maybe Princess Twilight, if somebody could get these roads fixed!

Maybe once she got set up at her stall she'd ask a neighbor to watch it for a few minutes so that she could run to Sugarcube Corners for some hot chocolate to help her finish waking up. Maybe a muffin run for the sellers around her would be nice.


	13. Pinkie Pie

Pinkie Pie woke up with a bounce. Gummie looked vaguely annoyed as he burrowed back into his nest to go back to sleep, but Pinkie did this most mornings, so he wasn't surprised or concerned.

Pinkie was far too excited to contain herself, though. Applejack had invited her to go to the bi-annual Apple Family Reunion as an honorary member of the Apple family tomorrow. Pinkie wanted to make a good impression. Lucky for her, a reunion is a type of party and nobody is as good at parties as Pinkie Pie! Well, except for maybe Cheese Sandwich. She smiled at the memory of the party they threw for Rainbow together.

Shaking her head, Pinkie pulled herself back to the task at hand. She started with her party canon. She'd used it earlier in the week, so it needed to be refilled with confetti and streamers for use again. She wanted to make a batch of her favorite pink sprinkle cupcakes to share with the Apple family as well. The last time she made them, Applejack had helped her and it hadn't gone well, so Pinkie had decided to make them alone this time.

The Cakes were using their kitchen all day, but Rarity had said that Pinkie could make cupcakes in her kitchen if she promised to clean up after herself. She gathered up the sprinkles and other supplies that she wasn't sure Rarity would have, called a goodbye to Gummie, and headed out to do some baking. She was going to really wow the Apples tomorrow!


	14. Sparkleworks

The sun was shining and birds were singing. Sparkleworks had preparations to make! She had a great game party planned for this evening and a dozen ponies would be showing up ready for fun, so Sparkleworks had better be ready for them! She'd planned everything out with the help of Apple Fritter (she'd helped Apple plan her family reunion for tomorrow in exchange), and now all she needed to do was set everything up.

Sparkleworks ate a quick breakfast of daisies and carrots before grabbing her bag of supplies for the party and rushing out the door. She double-checked that she had everything as she rushed through the streets of Applewood and was pleased to find nothing missing. This was going to be her best party yet! She and Apple Fritter had created an elaborate fairy tale themed mystery for the guests to solve and had planned for every contingency! She was so excited!

The party was being held in the park, so before most ponies were even awake, Sparkleworks hurried over to begin setting up. She took a look around at the space to figure out where to start. The bandstand needed to have curtains and flowers put up and everything needed to be checked so that the music could be hooked up later. She had arranged to borrow three round outdoor tables from the Sweet Shop across the street, so they would need to be fetched, placed, and trimmed. The gate needed decorating, clues needed hiding, and details needed triple-checking.

With her to-do list handy and a spring in her step, Sparkleworks set out to turn the park into a magical fairy tale dream suitable for the storybook princesses and princes who would arrive in a few hours. If they were to be able to have fun and solve the mystery, they needed a fabulous space to play in. Nobody was better than Sparkleworks at creating a fantasy like this!


	15. Cheerilee

Cheerilee hummed as she bustled about her kitchen making breakfast for herself. Breakfast was her favorite time of the day and she set aside time every day to enjoy it, often making elaborate meals.

One shelf in her kitchen was lined with cookbooks, all of which fell open to the breakfast section when taken down. Today she was making a beautiful strata with a variety of vegetables and flowers in each layer.

It was Saturday. The market was bustling on Saturdays and Cheerilee always enjoyed it. She took time every Saturday afternoon to take a trip to the marketplace and enjoy some shopping. She had staples she needed to stock up on for the week as well as supplies to buy for the special cake she had to make later today. Her favorite part of visiting the marketplace was seeing what everypony had to sell. She loved to try new things and always bought whatever was in season.

Cheerilee knew that today there would be fewer apples than usual, but Big Mac had told her that Applebucking season started next week, so the fruit would be in plentiful supply very soon. Cherries were what she really needed today, though, and those shouldn't be a problem to find. In fact, her favorite cherry grower had promised to set aside a basket of the best ones for her.

The Apple Family had a reunion every year on the weekend before Applebucking season started. This year it was in Applewood and Big Mac had asked Cheerilee if she would go along with him. She had agreed, but she was nervous. The Apple Family could be a bit overwhelming when they were excited, and they were always excited at reunions! She wasn't worried about them accepting her, she simply wasn't used to that much family in one place. Cheerilee was plenty used to the family here in Ponyville, but this would be the first time she had met most of the extended Apple family and doing so as the girlfriend was understandably intimidating.

Applejack had explained that everybody was expected to bring something to share, which Cheerilee thought was a great tradition (and made it easier on the host!). Since Apple Bloom had requested it specifically, she'd promised to make a cherry cake from her grandmother's recipe to take along. She planned to get her supplies at the market and then the pie would take a good portion of the afternoon. After that, Big Mac was taking her to dinner. It should be a very nice day.

First she was making herself an especially nice breakfast, though, and she planned a similar morning treat tomorrow to get herself in the mood for the reunion. She knew it would be alright, even if she was a tad nervous. The Apples were always welcoming and Big Mac would be with her the whole time.


	16. Lily Valley

Lily Valley loved market days! She shared a flower stand with her friend and fellow flower-aficionado Roseluck. They always took turns minding the stall so the other could roam the market shopping. Lily knew that Rose would spend most of the day watching for the Doctor that she had a big crush on, but Lily planned to have much more fun than that!

Three young fillies were planning to meet her at the flower stand after lunch to learn about flowers. Apple Bloom, the only one of the three that Lily knew very well, had said that she was studying with Princess Twilight Sparkle and that she needed a variety of flowers and someone to teach her about them for her studies. She didn't say exactly what she was studying with the princess, but Lily was happy to help her with whatever she wanted to learn about flowers.

She was thrilled that young fillies were interested in flowers at all. She had been having fun digging through her books about blossoms and pulling out interesting and useful things to teach the girls. She was making packets of seeds for them as well.

As she munched on her breakfast, she sorted the seeds into pretty ribbon-tied packets and waited for Roseluck to arrive with their cart. Lily's flowers (mostly varieties of lilies and irises) were already sorted into wooden crates and ready for travel to the marketplace. The flowers were especially beautiful this week, so Lily had high hopes of making a good number of bits today. It was likely to be a good day! Young fillies to teach and inspire as well as lovely flowers to sell and a lot of bits to earn!

Now she just had to make sure not to get too annoyed with Roseluck mooning over her Doctor and everything would be fine.


	17. Ribbon Wishes

Ribbon Wishes was running late! She needed to set up her stall on the beach and if she wasn't there early all the good spots would be taken. Her cart was basically ready to go because she hadn't touched it since yesterday, but she had a small pile of new necklaces to add to it.

Before she could worry about any of that, though, she had to get herself ready to go. She stumbled around her cottage trying to do too many things at once. First, she tried to brush her mane as she ate a muffin, but neither went well. Then she found herself dripping toothpaste on the floor as she frantically tried to brush her teeth while sweeping up all the muffin crumbs.

Even after she got the crumbs out of her mane it was still a mess. Ribbon Wishes decided to simply tie it back to try and hide the mess that she had made of it, but the ribbons seemed to fight her efforts. Finally, almost in tears, she gave up and crushed a straw beach hat onto her head. That would simply have to do.

Running very late now, she crammed the newly-finished ribbon and shell necklaces into her cart and hurried towards the beach. She knew that her spot would be long gone by now, but she hoped to find a spot somewhere down the beach, beyond the popular boardwalk area. There was usually space down there. Some ponies did wander that far, just not as many as shopped near the boardwalk. Sales were never as good that far down the beach. Hopefully the day wouldn't be a total loss, though.

As Ribbon Wishes tugged her cart free of a pothole it had gotten caught in and the boardwalk came into view she stopped short. Her spot was open! Beachberry, the pony who sold fruit-flavored shaved ice in the spot next to hers, smiled broadly and waved. Ribbon Wishes hurried over with her cart.

"I saved your spot for you," Beachberry said. "Here, let me help you get set up!"

"And if you want," piped up Braided Beauty, whose mane and tail braiding booth was on the other side of where Ribbon Wishes sold her necklaces, "I'd be happy to braid your mane when you're done so you can lose that hat. I know you hate wearing it."

Ribbon Wishes was so grateful that she burst into tears. Maybe the day wasn't going to be so bad after all!


	18. Applejack

Applejack woke up as early as usual, but immediately recalled that she could sleep in today. She rolled over, squeezed her eyes shut, and blissfully fell back asleep.

After about an hour and a half, Applejack woke up again. She yawned and pushed herself up out of bed. The soreness in her muscles reminded her that she had stayed up late. Tomorrow was the Apple Family reunion and Applejack had agreed that Pinkie Pie could come along. She had been up late worrying over that decision.

As she put her mane in its usual ponytail, she again thought about her worries. She loved Pinkie Pie just as she loved her siblings and her other close friends, but she also worried about taking the party pony to the reunion. Planning the reunions was a big job and quite an honor. It was also, as she had recently learned, a lot of hard work. This would be Apple Fritter's first time planning everything and she didn't want Pinkie Pie saying or doing anything to suggest that it had somehow been done wrong.

Oh, Applejack knew that Pinkie Pie would never be mean intentionally, it was just that she had a tendency to sort of take over any party she attended. Apple Fritter didn't know Pinkie that well and might misunderstand her good intentions as disparaging of her own hostessing skills. If Pinkie was less exuberant about everything, Appliejack might be less worried. Her friend's enthusiasm was one of her best qualities, but that didn't mean it couldn't be a bit much sometimes.

With a sigh, she headed downstairs. In the kitchen, she found Granny Smith alone making pies. She stayed just long enough to hear Granny's request for a bushel of fresh apples and headed out to the farm.

As she worked on the few chores Big Mac had left for her, Applejack decided to share her concerns with Granny Smith. The wise older pony would almost certainly have good advice. And she knew Pinkie Pie well enough for the concern to make sense to her. Even if Granny Smith couldn't come up with a solution, talking out worries with her always seemed to help.

Feeling a little better already, Applejack headed out to the orchard to gather the requested bushel of apples.


	19. Lotus Blossom

Lotus Blossom was excited, but also a little nervous. Gardenia Glow had taken her first day off in a long time and had left Lotus Blossom in charge of the spa for the day. She was determined to do a great job. Maybe if she did a good enough job, Gardenia Glow would leave her in charge more often!

After getting cleaned up and ready for work, she ate a refreshing grapefruit and then hurried over to open the spa. It was a beautiful day, so she decided to set up the outdoor facial stations and the sunbathing loungers.

As Lotus was getting the outdoor area set up, she noticed that the market stalls were being set up down the street. The spa was only half a block from the market square, so on nice market days they often got extra business from ponies coming to shop. She found the special summer market day sandwich sign to stand up on the sidewalk in front of the spa.

Lotus started getting soothing concoctions mixed and ready for the day. There were facial muds to cool and massage oils to warm. She was cutting up vegetables (both for treatments and as easy to eat healthy snacks) when Aloe came in to start her workday. Lotus gave her a basket and some bits and sent her to the market square to buy some lemons and fresh berries to infuse refreshing spring water with. Infused water was always popular with customers, especially on warm summer days!

Lotus Blossom was pleased with her preparations. It was definitely going to be a great day!


	20. Sea Shimmer

Sea Shimmer looked out of the opening in the coral of her bedroom wall at the morning bustle of Hippocampia. Lots of sea ponies were already up and bustling about. Since she liked to watch the sunset every night, Sea Shimmer was rarely up early.

The first order of business was finding breakfast. Sea Shimmer favored a particular type of seaweed, but they were all out of it. With a sigh, she added it to the family shopping list and munched on some of the sea grass that her mother liked instead. It wasn't as sweet as the seaweed, but it worked.

The sunset of the night before had been especially spectacular. Sea Shimmer intended to spend the day making a sand painting of it. She headed to her mother's art room to work, since everyone else seemed to be out for the morning. Her mother was a great sand painter and Sea Shimmer hoped to someday be just as good. To that end, she tried to practice at least a little bit every day.

She gathered up her supplies - a framed tray, tiny rakes of various sizes, and a collection of pots containing different colors of sand. The sunset had been unusually elaborately colored due to the day's rain, so she pulled out colors she rarely used - vivid pinks, soft greens, and vibrant purples. The image should make a particularly beautiful sand painting. Sea Shimmer sat down to paint, singing happily to herself.


	21. Flam

She galloped through the woods with her green mane and tail streaming out behind her. He caught enticing glimpses as she ran, but the trees were too close together for him to get a good view of her. The trees also made it difficult for him to catch her, despite his longer legs. When he called out for her to wait, she only laughed. He loved the sound of her laugh.

MLP MLP MLP MLP MLP

Flam woke with a smile as her laugh faded. He had been having the dream more and more frequently lately. He'd had it for the last three nights. The dreams (and daydreams) were the reason that he had insisted that they return to Applewood. He needed to see her again.

With her image still running through his thoughts, Flam got up and left the tent. He found Flim counting bottles of their "miracle" tonic. If they needed to make more (and Flam knew that they were running a little low), then they were going to have to buy more apples. Luckily, apples were usually in plentiful supply in Applewood. It would give him an excuse to talk to her, since she ran the Apple family orchard here.

As much as he longed to tell her how he felt, Flam knew that it was never meant to be. She and her family, the Apples, had proven to consistently be the biggest impediment to the Flim Flam Brothers' success. There were branches of the Apple family all over Equestria and it seemed like every time Flim and Flam encountered them, their schemes fell apart. Even if he could have confided in his brother, he knew that Apple Fritter would never return his love. She had been one of their staunchest enemies. He would have to content himself with watching her when he could and chasing her in his dreams.

His love might be entirely hopeless, but at least today he might see her again. With one last sigh, Flam straightened his favorite tie and headed out to start the day.


	22. Silver Spoon

Silver Spoon sighed as she slowly munched on her breakfast. It was a beautiful day, but she wasn't particularly looking forward to it. Diamond Tiara had declared that since they didn't have school today, they were going to spend the day brainstorming new ways to regain control of the school newspaper.

When they had started working on the paper Silver Spoon had been excited. It had sounded like a lot of fun. When Diamond Tiara had gotten herself named editor, Silver Spoon had been excited about the prospect of getting to boss everypony else around. The reality, especially since Featherweight had taken over, was anything but fun, though.

While she genuinely enjoyed laying out the paper and coming up with new story ideas, that wasn't what Silver Spoon did most of the time. When Diamond Tiara had been editor, Silver Spoon had spent nearly all of her time trying to clean up her friend's messes and getting no real credit for the finished product.

Since Featherweight took over, all she had gotten to do was listen to Diamond Tiara whine about it and help her try to cause the paper to fail so that she could take over again. If Diamond Tiara wasn't her best friend, she would have abandoned the paper entirely long ago.

As it was, she simply found herself dreading another day of working on ways to destroy the paper and listening to her friend plan ways to get herself named editor again. One of these days either she would tell Diamond Tiara that she was done with the project or her friend would find a new project to obsess about. Silver Spoon hoped the later happened today, since she wasn't yet brave enough for the former.


	23. Confetti

Confetti got up later than usual since she wasn't specifically expected anywhere until lunchtime. The extra hour of sleep was a nice treat. She had a sweet apple for breakfast that her friend Apple Fritter had dropped off yesterday. There was a basket full of them and one made a perfect start to what she hoped would be a perfect day.

After eating, Confetti wasn't sure what to do until her friends arrived for lunch. Her toy shop was closed for the day, so she couldn't occupy herself there. She looked around her house for something to do.

On her worktable was an assortment of papers and some partially completed paper models. Confetti decided to sit down and work on the project. Her specialty was paper toys and over the last few months she had made a series of elaborate paper theaters and everything necessary for a wide variety of performances - plays, operas, even a few ballets.

She felt like this new project was a continuation of that series, although it was posing some new challenges. When she was finished, it would be a miniature paper fashion runway complete with a curtain and backstage area.

She had made a series of paper dolls depicting fashions from a recent show by Rarity, an up-and-coming designer Confetti particularly liked, to go with the runway. The choice of what designer and collection to use had been difficult. She had wanted a set of dolls that showed off the variety of possibilities when working with paper as well as one that looked good in such a small scale. Rarity's latest show had been full of designs perfect for this project, so Confetti had chosen it to be her first one. Eventually, she intended to make more doll sets based on other designers and shows, too.

This morning she was focusing on the lights around the base of the runway - tiny cups of paper holding colored films that could cover real tiny lights. It was a lot of work to make so many tiny lights, but the effect would be breathtaking when it was complete!

Confetti was so deeply engrossed in her work that she was astonished when her friends showed up with lunch. They swept her off to a flurry of preparations and girl talk, leaving her work to wait for another day.


	24. Luna

Princess Luna looked out over Canterlot from her high perch in the castle. The night was almost over and Celestia would arrive soon to raise the sun. She had a few more moments of moonlit quiet to enjoy first, though.

She wasn't sure why, but the end of the night was always the quietest part. Even the dreams were quiet. She liked it this way. It meant her nights usually ended peacefully, even if they were sometimes filled with the chaos and fear of pony nightmares early on.

A thousand years ago, before Nightmare Moon, Luna hadn't realized how much her gifts could make a difference in the lives of her subjects. She had thought that dreams didn't really matter. She had resented how everypony celebrated the sun and Celestia, but barely noticed her and her moon. Ponies often entirely forgot their dreams, so she wondered how dreams could matter.

Luna understood now that she had been very wrong. Trapped in the moon all those years had kept her from being able to use most of her powers, but she had still been able to watch ponies both as they lived their waking lives and as they moved through their dreams. What she had come to realize was that dreams mattered a lot. A pony was greatly affected by their dreams. By helping ponies through their bad dreams as they slept under her moon, Luna was helping them become happier and healthier when they were awake.

Tonight there had been relatively few bad dreams. Luna had mostly been able to spend the night enjoying the ponies' dream visions as they wished for wonderful things and anticipated the fun they would have the next day. There were always a few nightmares, but Luna had been able to deftly help the ponies with them work through their fears and concerns.

When Luna saw Celestia come out of the tower doorway to raise the sun and take over the sky for the day, she smiled and gently let her moon set. It had been a good night and she was now ready for some sleep and dreams herself.


	25. Beautiful Bows

It would be another few hours before the dresses were picked up and Beautiful Bows wanted to put a few finishing touches on them first. To that end, she ate a quick breakfast as soon as she got up and went out to the shop. Four bridesmaid dresses and a bridal gown stood on mannequins around the workroom. Beautiful Bows was happy with the bridal gown, but the maids' dresses needed some finishing touches.

Each dress was designed with the personality and coloring of the wearer in mind, but there were common elements that tied it all together. This morning she wanted to finish them up by adding some pearl trim that was repeated in the bride's dress. The pearls would delicately circle the neckline of each dress and add a special sheen that she hoped would enhance the elegance of the wedding.

Beautiful Bows hummed as she worked. She loved weddings and was very much looking forward to this one. Even though she didn't have a special somepony yet, she was optimistic that she would someday. She dreamed about her perfect wedding as she worked. Pink flowers would trim a white arch and beautiful music would greet all of her friends. It would be magnificent!

Now she just needed the bridegroom. Maybe she would meet him at the wedding this evening! Confetti had a lot of friends, so it was going to be a pretty big wedding. Beautiful Bows decided that she would be social tonight and have faith that he would appear when she needed him. Eventually she would find him!


	26. Peppermint Twist

It was Saturday and Peppermint Twist planned to spend it in doing absolutely nothing of any significance. A day of relaxing was best started with a late morning spent lounging in bed. Twist stretched luxuriously under her quilt and enjoyed the feeling of not having her glasses perched on her nose. She couldn't see much beyond blurs of color, but that just made it easier to doze off again.

An hour or so later, Twist woke up again. She stretched and sighed. She didn't feel like going to sleep again, but she didn't feel like leaving her cozy bed yet either. She reached for her glasses and the book she had been reading the night before. It was one of her favorites - _Sharp Eye and the Candy Factory Mystery_. It was about a filly who solved a mystery in an abandoned candy factory. There were dozens of Sharp Eye mysteries, but this was the one Twist loved best. She had already read it eight times.

Snuggled under her soft quilt of peppermint striped fabric, Twist opened the book to dive into the story again. She heard a knocking on the front door downstairs, though. Listening, she heard her mother answer the door. She could hear voices, but she couldn't make out what they were saying or who the pony at the door might be. Curious, she climbed out of bed and went out to the landing at the top of the stairs. At the door was Twist's Uncle, Carrot Cake.

"Hey, Twist!" he called up when he spotted her. "We're shorthanded at Sugarcube Corners today and wondered if you'd like to come over and help us out."

"I'd love to!" Twist replied, running eagerly down the stairs. "Thank you, Uncle Carrot!"

"Don't thank me yet," he laughed. "Mrs. Cake plans to keep you busy in the kitchen all day."

Twist grinned and followed her Uncle back to his shop, excited for the chance to spend the day making treats in the bakery's fantastic kitchen.


	27. Gardenia Glow

Gardenia Glow climbed out of her bed and glided over to her vanity. She carefully wiped off the mud mask she slept in with a warm, soft towel. The mud made her face soft and her complexion clear. She took pride in her beautiful coat. After studying herself in her mirror for a few minutes she decided that it was time to find some breakfast.

In her kitchen, Gardenia Glow put together a wheatgrass shake for breakfast and sat down to sip it as she resumed reading the book she had started yesterday. It was an adventure story - the first in the _Daring Do_ series by A. K. Yearling. Generally, Gardenia Glow didn't go for adventure stories, but one of her spa patrons had turned her onto the series a year ago and she had been a devoted fan ever since.

One of the girls who worked for her had told Gardenia Glow that Princess Twilight Sparkle was going to start a Daring Do book club. She had eagerly investigated and found out that the first meeting was today. She was excited and was rereading the first book in the series to get in the mood. She had even taken the whole day off, leaving Lotus Blossom in charge at the spa. It had been a little while since she had taken a day off, but already she was enjoying it very much! Hopefully the book club would be as much fun as she hoped.

She hadn't been inside the tree castle Princess Twilight lived in, but she passed it every day on her way to the spa. She was almost as excited about seeing the inside of the castle as she was about getting to share her love of all things Daring Do with other fans!

As she drank her shake and turned the pages of her book, Gardenia Glow smiled with the contentment that only came from a well-earned day off work.


End file.
